Surviving and Living
by duo7700
Summary: Ben and the gang come are teleported to the DCU. Now they must live in this new universe, but will they only be able to survive? Reviews appreciated! Being rewritten.
1. RUSEJA

Ben Tennyson floats on an endless sea of black as clutches on to a hand that is clutching back.

_What do I do? I can't defeat something that I can't see._

The Omnitrix on his wrist beeps madly as the darkness begins to engulf him.

_It feels all at once cold and warm, as though it is something I've met before._

The darkness engulfs his chest, but the Omnitrix still is beeps madly, piercing the otherwise silent sea.

_Azmuth was right, the Omnitrix would be safe from…_

The frantic beeping stops as Ben's head is lost in the shadow.

_The universe is lost: Activating Omnitrix defense protocol RUSEJA._

The Omnitrix glowed a bright orange and it's speck of light disappeared from the dying universe.

* * *

Ben awoke with one thought in his head:

Damn it, my hand fell asleep.

Then he remembered: He had died.

He felt the icy hands of death on his skin. The warm feeling coming over him as his subconscious realized that he had avoided death long enough and simply accepted it, releasing his fear and letting curiosity take its place.

And the reason his hand was asleep was…

"Kevin!" he yelled as he finally opened his eyes.

"'bout time you woke up, been yanking on your arm for a few minutes," Kevin looked as though he hadn't slept for days."

"Ben, I was beginning to think you wouldn't wake up," Gwen was just below Kevin, and she had a similar look as he did.

How long was I out?

"I dunno. Kinda to tell," Kevin said, "In case you haven't noticed, we ain't exactly in Kansas anymore."

Ben finally took in his surroundings, which took little time. He was somewhere…

"Orange… really orange."

"Very perceptive," Gwen said sarcastically.

The Omnitrix beeped as a hologram of Azmuth was projected above it.

"Ben Tennyson, if you are seeing this then something horrible has happened: The universe has died. Long ago, I told you that I made the Omnitrix as a sort of Noah's Ark. The Omnitrix is useless if the species have nowhere to go.

"That was purpose of RUSEJA, it downloads the contents of Primus into the wearer of the Omnitrix and teleports the Omnitrix to another universe, chosen at random by the Omnitrix. Each of the universes in the Omnitrix database has already been visited by me and you should be contacted by someone shortly after your arrival.

"Ben, it is imperative that you protect the Omnitrix. It is now the legacy of our universe. Good bye Ben Tennyson."

The hologram shuts off, only to turn back on.

"One last thing, I forgive you for tampering with the Omnitrix. To ensure that you don't do it again, and that it remains safe, it will now be fully unlocked."

They three stared at one another until Ben broke the silence.

"I always knew he'd forgive me."

Gwen shot him and Kevin an angry look as the boys laughed.


	2. Split

So, this is where it becomes a crossover! Yippee!

* * *

Kevin groaned, "How long is this going to take," he yelled in irritation, "I don't sleep well without back support."

Gwen raised an eyebrow, "Sleeping problems should be the least of your problems, Kevin. We're the last living beings from our universe."

"A man's still gotta sleep, Gwen. Ben agrees with me." They looked over at Ben.

"I'm starting to get…"

"Worried?"

"Yes, worried. He's been asleep since the recording from Azmuth. It's a bit hard to tell how long it's been, but I'd estimate we've been traveling for," she paused to do some calculations.

"About 6 days. That means that we'll run out of food and water in three."

Gwen and Kevin fell silent as Ben mumbled about giant marshmallow squids trying to steal his iPod.

* * *

Ben dreamt on and on.

Most of the dreams made absolutely no sense: Marshmallow squids and Kevin square-dancing with his car.

Then he felt cool breeze on his face, coming from an airlock on the first Mr. Smoothie in space. It felt important to him.

More important than smoothies.

The airlock opened as he approached, and a blinding light hit him, but still he moved forward.

He was in another dream, that didn't quite seem like a dream. A singular light shone down in him. He heard a familiar voice.

"Omnitrix Neural Link Active."

It echoed throughout the dark room. "Who's there?"

Millions of lights along the floor lit up, all illuminating beings within the Omnitrix. Ben's face lit up as he saw every alien he'd ever been, seen and those that'd he'd never seen.

* * *

Ben awoke, the bright orange light around him hurting his eyes.

"Well… good morning sleepy head."

"'bout damn time Tennyson. I thought you were in a coma or something."

Ben held up his middle finger at Kevin as he yawned, then asked Gwen, "How long was I out?"

"Nearly eight days," she tossed him a granola bar, which caused Ben to pull a face, "It's all we have left."

A few hours later, a sudden crack split the silence. Gwen, who had been using Kevin as a pillow elbowed him in the face when she awoke with a start.

"Where's Be…"

Another crack and they disappeared.

* * *

A klaxon blared all across the tower. Feet could be heard rushing down the hallway.

The green boy listening was somewhat less responsive.

"Huh? Wha? Whazgoinon?"

"Titans, emergency!" Another voice came over the intercom, "He means you, Beast Boy!"

A tiny, "eep!" escaped as he jumped out of bed and flew out the door in a flash of green and magenta, hastily putting on his uniform as he went.

The Teen Titans were assembled waiting to hear what the problem was. "Doctor Light is destroying downtown, as you know, he's lightweight, rather simple fight but the JLA has..."

The computer behind Robin let out another alarm and a dot appeared near where Doctor Light was.

"What is it, friend Robin?"

"A rift in space appeared over the city. Doctor Light may have been doing something more than causing general mayhem. Titans, go!"

* * *

Kevin groaned. "My back…"

"You're going to forget about your back pain if you don't get off of me…"

He lifted himself off her. They both and several cuts and bruises, Kevin a long gash along his spine, but were able to walk away from the landing zone.

"I have a feeling that you're supposed to be in a ship or something when you do that," Kevin said.

Gwen ignored the comment. "We need to find you a doctor, then we need to find Ben. There's a sign," she pointed to a sign that was barely visible. She ran towards it. Kevin didn't run, but he made to the sign first after collapsing and rolling down the hill.

"Ow!"

"The Hamlet of Olympus, population 73," she read.

"Great, maybe I can get a shotgun blast to the face before Daisy Moses fixes me up."

Gwen conjured a gurney and levitated Kevin onto it, "Be quiet and don't move."

* * *

Poor Kevin... elbowed in the face, seriously injured, and now heading to what is probably the DCU equivalent of the Beverly Hillbillies' hometown. And for those of you who don't know, Daisy Moses is Granny's name from The Beverly Hillbillies show.

And I find those dreams of Ben's to be entirely possible. He's a weird guy... and given the chance, I think Kevin would dance with his car.


	3. Travel

**A/N: Yay! New chapter! I want to thank those that fav'd the story. Lots of love to ya'll. More love if you review. And you get one imaginary cookie... they're vegetarian, but I promise they're awesome!  
On to the story... but before that, I should probably say that all characters and locations are copyright their respective creators and/or evil mega-media corporations... I'm lookin' at you Phil and Jeff!**

* * *

Kevin opened his eyes and found that he was strapped down to a rather comfortable bed.

"What is this enchanting device, dear?" The voice was that of an old woman.

"It's an ID mask. It allows the wearer to assume the appearance of someone else," Gwen replied, rather nonchalantly, "It helped him blend in."

"Well, I don't think he'll need it anymore," she said with raspy chuckle.

"Why am I tied down?" Kevin yelled.

Gwen ran into the room, followed seconds later by an old woman. "Sorry Kevin, you started to resist treatment when she told you her name."

"Why… what's her name?"

"Daisy May Moses, pleasure to meet while you aren't delirious," the old woman was taking a pipe out of her apron.

Kevin fainted.

* * *

Hours later, Kevin awoke to a tired looking Gwen looking at a map. Without looking up, she said, "Food is right next to you, it's fried chicken."

Kevin picked up the tray and sat up in the bed, the straps holding him down having been removed. "What are you doing," he asked with a mouthful of chicken, mashed potatoes and peas.

"I'm trying to figure out the easiest way to get out of here. We landed in a place that doesn't exist in our Earth's geography. We're surrounded by mountains Kevin and there isn't a road to the nearest metropolitan area that is open."

"Why is it closed?"

"Someone blew it up. You see, we fit in pretty well here. There are superheroes and villains all over the place. Daisy May is a superhuman that can diagnose and find remedies to nearly any affliction. Have you even noticed that you aren't wearing your ID mask?"

Kevin tried looked at his hands and tried to pull off the mask, instead touching his cheek. "I'm…"

"Surely you weren't going to say 'Human'. That would've been corny." The old woman walked into the room, her pipe spewing acrid smoke, "You've always been Human, always been flesh and blood, you just looked had a slight skin condition."

"Slight?"

"You should've seen how quickly she fixed you up."

"All it took was a bath of club soda, most things do, strangely enough," she smiled as she stowed her pipe back in her apron.

* * *

The next morning, Gwen and Kevin bid farewell to their host. Once they had left the town, Gwen bent down and pulled up a pant leg to grab a travel bag from her sock. After getting a curious look from Kevin, she explained.

"You and Ben tend to disappear often, he gets kidnapped, you run off without your badge, so, I decided it'd be nice to have a tracking kit," she smiled, obviously pleased with herself, "I have samples for both of you in here." Gwen pulled out a test tube that contained several strands of brown hair. "I stole some hair from both of you when you guys got wasted a while back."

Kevin stared at Gwen, "That's… uh… creepy."

Gwen emptied the tube into her hand and it floated in a ball of pink energy, "A bit to the west."

She levitated herself and began hovering in the directing she indicated, wigged out Kevin in tow.

It was near the middle of the next day when they reached the mountain.

"The mountain is a lot steeper than I thought it'd be," Kevin said.

Gwen had dropped down and was stowing the hair back in its vial, "We'll be taking the stairs."

Gwen started conjuring stairs, "We can slide down the other side though."

They reached the snowy summit at midnight, Kevin let out a scream of joy.

"Finally, let's slide down, it's freezing up here." Gwen had already conjured the slide and pushed him.

As they hit the warm ground, Kevin fell asleep instantly and Gwen used him as a pillow, "So much more comfortable now."

As she tried to fall asleep, she saw in the distance their goal: Jump City.

"Ben has got to be there," she thought as she drifted into a deep sleep, where she dreamt that Cooper was actually a handsome baseball player in her class.

* * *

The pair woke in the morning to rain. Gwen quickly put up a mana shield to use as an umbrella. Quietly, they walked toward the city, Gwen periodically checking to see if Ben was moving.

It was dusk when they reached the outskirts of the city and they smelled burnt wood in the air.

"Who lights a fireplace in the middle of summer, I ask you?" Gwen was staring at Kevin, whose gaze was transfixed on the horizon.

"It's not a fireplace Gwen… you smell burnt flesh in the air too," he pointed to an orange glow in the distance, "An apartment fire, probably in the Downtown area."

They looked at one another, Gwen clearly full of worry, Kevin's eyes betraying his otherwise indifferent face.

They bolted toward the crimson glow, with one thought between them:

"Ben, please be alright."

* * *

**A/N (a long one):Somewhat less substance than you were hoping for? You miss Benji? You want Titans? Then get ready for the next chapter...****Which will be ready in a week. Unless I can't stand the anticipation. Well, I already know what is going to happen, so it is more matter of if I happen to have the time. I started writing a book on top of all the other work I have to do.****I promise to make weekly updates though, unless something prevents it.  
Oh, and curious as to who Phil and Jeff are? They're the CEOs of ****Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. and TimeWarner (parent company of DC Comics) respectively.****I'm done typing now. Go read some other fanfiction. No Tragedy though. Some people here can really bring you down.  
Or cause nightmares.  
**


	4. Hospitality

I was a bit worried I wouldn't get to post on time. We got a lot of snow here in DC. Well, we did considering it was DC. I actually ended up being one of about 10 houses in my neighborhood to still have power. Good for everyone that wants to read this chapter!

* * *

Ben was in a familiar room: the same room he saw all of the Omnitrix aliens in.

The aliens were very different though. Every single one was talking. Millions of voices could be heard echoing throughout the room.

Ben stared as Chromastone and Diamondhead laughed at a joke told by Heatblast, at Humongosaur and Way Big challenged one another to arm wrestling, and as Echo Echo started his own barbershop quartet.

Ben collapsed and curled up into a fetal position, his head pounding, until the sound was drowned out by a whisper in the distance.

"_Azerath Metrion Zinthos…"_

"Who's there?"

The din of countless voice returned, only to be drowned out again by a louder chant, "Azerath Metrion Zinthos."

"Show yourself!"

The room dissolved around him and he was left alone, and once again he heard the chant, this time it was almost a scream, _"Azerath Metrion Zinthos!"_

A woman in a navy robe appeared in front of him, a grim look on her face.

"Who are you?" Ben yelled.

"I am Raven, and to answer the question that you are likely to ask next, we are in your mind."

"I had already figured that out, my next question was going to be 'Why are you in my head?'"

Raven stared at him, "You're in a coma. You were attacked and held hostage for nearly a day. During that time, the individual attempted to get the device on your wrist off and…" she stopped herself.

"And… what?"

"That is all I should say. Before we help you, we need to know something."

"What do you need to know?"

"We need to know where you are from."

Ben thought of how to explain it, and as he thought, his town appeared around him, taking the place of the blank room.

Raven's eyes darted around until she found a small sign reading, "Bellwood City Limits, 2 miles".

"Bellwood? There is no such place."

"Maybe not here but…" Once again the room changed to show a memory, the most painful memory.

It was nighttime in Bellwood, he, Gwen and Kevin were all at Mr. Smoothie for Seven Super Smooth Smoothies and a Cinema Saturday. The movie had ended hours ago, but the summer evening was so enjoyable that they stayed out and enjoyed the night, staring at the stars.

Then the stars disappeared and the Plumber's badges lit up with one message: "Earth is lost."

As the darkness crept along the streets, screams were silence as people were engulfed. In a singular night, the entire universe would die.

The black tide reached the trio, Gwen was first, she held onto Kevin, but he too would be lost, despite him holding onto Ben.

Then Ben's Omnitrix teleported them to another universe and they became survivors.

Raven stared intently at the memory as it flashed before their eyes. Then Ben saw something he didn't recall.

A flash of light and he was falling. He tried to change to an alien, any alien, but a voice rang through his head, "Omnitrix is attempting to connect to parent element."

He opened his eyes and saw a city on fire. He closed his eyes and said, "Goodbye."

Raven stared at Ben again, "That would explain most of your injuries. Something slowed your fall, though."

"Who cares what, as long as something did."

Raven simply said, "You'll wake up in a small infirmary. Don't try to move, you still have quite a few broken bones. If there is a green face staring at you intently, don't be alarmed, he doesn't bite. He's a vegetarian."

She closed her eyes and disappeared. Moments later, the blank room dissolved into black. Ben could hear a steady beeping to his left. Then he realized that there was light, and he opened his eyes.

* * *

He was face to face with a green skinned teen wearing a toothy grin.

A familiar voice to his left calmly said, "Give him some space Gar."

The face disappeared from his view, "Is that you Raven?"

"Yes. Thank you for remembering not to move."

Ben tilted his head and saw that she was floating in midair.

"I must ask that you do not speak to me, I need to concentrate while I heal you," she told him as he opened his mouth to speak. Raven's breathing became slower and she started chanting, _"Azerath M__e__trion Zinthos."_

The green skinned teen came back into the room with others in tow, a black haired teen in a mask, a cyborg, and a redhaired one who was carrying a rather large worm.

"I'm Robin of the Teen Titans, this is Cyborg, Starfire, and I believe you've met Raven and Beastboy," Robin said, indicating each Titan as he said their name. "Beastboy relayed the information the Raven gleaned from the little meeting you two had, I'm here to fill in the rest, and learn a bit more."

Ben, rather blandly, said, "Okay."

"First, what is your name?"

Robin asked questions for several hours, until Raven got angry and threw him bodily from the room. Starfire brought him some dinner, exclaiming, "New friend! I have learned to make mother's Pikrex Surprise! You must try some, it is most delicious!" The rest of the Titans peeked into the infirmary as Starfire fed it to him.

"It's by far the best I've had, but I've only had it at spacestation cafeterias, so I'm not the best critic."

Starfire giggled, "Many people are unable to taste the Vuir'nax Berries, which counteract the bitter taste of Glorkky Bork," she stared at the massive empty bowl, "Would you like some more?"

"I couldn't possibly eat another bite, thanks for the offer though."

Starfire smiled and bounced away. The rest of the Titans walked into the infirmary. Cyborg broke the silence.

"You can stomach Star's cooking? Not only stomach it, but you enjoy it?"

Ben stared at the group, "It's just alien food. I've been to so many alien worlds, some for an extended period of time. Some isn't that bad. But I noticed that full blooded humans have a harder time stomaching it."

Robin raised an eyebrow, "you look human to me."

"Well, I'm a quarter Anodite."

In the blink of an eye, Starfire appeared next to Ben, a twinkle in her eyes, and exclaimed rather loudly, "I knew I felt a connection! We are relatives, albeit distant ones."

Raven opened her eyes and a flurry of objects flew at the Titans as she yelled, "I...," a large old book whizzed by Cyborg, "told you…," a metal tray flew under Robin as he jumped, "that I need…," scalpels were dodged and deflected by Starfire, "to CONCENTRATE," Beastboy got beaned in the head with the heart monitor.

Raven did some deep breathing and turned to a frightened Ben, "You can walk now. I'll get you some crutches. You should be fine in a day or two."

Beastboy whimpered, "He'll be fine, but what about me!?"

* * *

Poor BB. I love Starfire because of the funny words. Glorkky Bork sounds funny and sounds like it might be bitter tasting. Or awful.

And Raven needs anger management. Stay tuned for more B10/TT hilarity! I promise you'll find out what the parent element is, if you haven't deduced it already. Next chappy we switch back to Kevin and Gwen.


	5. Revelations

I'm a bit late with one. Slight warning: Slight AU

* * *

Gwen and Kevin had sprinted through the city, its citizens staring at the pair as the sprinted toward danger. They reached the fire, but found more.

An armored man was talking to a masked teen, "Thanks again Robin, if you and the Titans hadn't gotten here sooner, Dr. Light would've been unstoppable."

The masked teen looked up at the man, "We're just trying to keep Jump City safe. It's unfortunate that we didn't get here before he…" Robin was unable to finish the sentence, he instead punched the burnt out husk of a building and said, "That sick bastard."

"How is he doing, if you don't mind me asking? Dr. Light didn't go easy on him."

Robin looked uneasy, "He… doesn't remember. Raven thinks that if he does, he could detach himself from reality since he's already gone through so much."

"What do you mean?"

"The memories that Raven saw show that he is from another universe… a dead one. He, along with two others, are the only survivors…"

Kevin, upon hearing this, rushed over shouting, "Where… is… Ben!" Gwen was trying to hold him back.

"Kevin, calm down, you're going to scare him. He's not an enemy, he didn't kidnap Ben."

Robin was taken aback by the sudden explosion of sound, not to mention the fact that this person knew the name of the Titan's guest. Kevin, however, did not feel like waiting for someone to regain their composure.

A hand of solid steel hit Robin in the face, followed by another, more passionate, "Where is Ben!"

Before Kevin could land another blow, Gwen levitated him into the air.

"I'm sorry about him. Are you alright… Robin, was it?" Gwen extended a hand to help Robin up.

Robin scowled at Kevin who, of course, scowled back, "Yes I'm alright. Identify yourselves."

"I am Gwendolyn Tennyson and he is Kevin Levin, cousin and friend respectively of Benjamin Tennyson and fellow Plumbers."

Robin stared at them. Then he took the communicator from his belt, "This is Robin, need transportation for three."

A monotone voice replied, "I'll do it, Starfire is busy cooking with Beastboy and Cyborg"

A shadow appeared on the ground and out of it came a pale faced girl in a blue robe.

"Thank you, Raven. These are…"

"Gwen and Kevin, I know, I saw them. We should go," she looked up at Kevin, who was still floating, but no longer looked enraged, "You will both need to hold on to me."

Gwen lowered Kevin onto the ground and they, along with Robin held onto Raven. Immediately they felt cold and they were surrounded by darkness. In an instant, they were warm again and in a bright room. More specifically, it was a bright and loud room that smelled of old gym socks.

"I totally won BB, and you know it! The stank ball hit you in the head, that was worth 10 points!"

"I caught it! You know I did, I saw the look of shock on your face!"

"Please, friends! You must not yell over who won the ball game of stank!

"Guys, Star is right, it's just game. You can always play again, and have someone referee next time. And have some clearly defined rules. From what I saw, that was confusing"

The last voice caused Gwen and Kevin to turn their heads towards the hallway door. Ben walked through the door with Beastboy, Cyborg and Starfire in tow. Beastboy was holding a large ball of dirty socks and underwear.

Kevin ran over to Ben, Gwen started seconds later. Ben toppled over as Kevin ran into him.

Gwen stopped in shock at what she saw.

Kevin was kissing Ben, forcefully, yet lovingly. Tears flowed from his eyes. Kevin pulled away, Ben took a deep breath.

"Don't ever scare me like that again, Benji."

Ben cried and hugged Kevin, who returned the affection.

Gwen stared until Starfire offered her Poxis Loudew Loudew, the traditional Tamaranean cure for shocking news.

* * *

It was the middle of the night when Robin opened the door to Gwen's bedroom. She woke up immediately, ready for a fight, but instead the silhouette said, "Come to the briefing room."

Kevin was rummaging around the refrigerator in the kitchen when he heard Starfire, her voice full of sorrow, "Robin would like to speak with you in the briefing room, follow me.

Gwen and Kevin, along with the Titans, were in assembled in the meeting room. Gwen look up and down the table again before asking, "Where's Ben?"

Robin took a moment, "We don't think he should hear this. We're going to tell you what happened to him."

Gwen and Kevin looked at one another.

The big screen behind Robin turned on and displayed a timeline of events, while a hologram on the table displayed the city.

Robin continued, "We received an alert. It was Dr. Light," An image of Dr. Light appeared in a monitor to the left of the larger one, "He is, overall, harmless. But, years ago, the Justice League lobotomized him after he was wrongly accused of raping the wife of one of its members. He is, however, still a serial rapist and a genius, despite the lobotomy," A rap sheet lit up a side monitor and started scrolling, every sheet was stamped with, "JLA Eyes Only".

"The Justice League no longer bothers with him. Now, we are the only ones who bother to try. As of late, he has become more obsessed with getting the JLA to notice him again. He's been causing more and more destruction. As you saw, he burned down all of downtown, but how he did it, is what is disturbing." The hologram now zoomed in on downtown

"Shortly after the alert caused by Dr. Light, another alert appear over downtown. Ben and broken through the wall of our universe and was falling towards downtown." The hologram had zoomed into the sky and showed a bright flash, which blinded everyone momentarily. "He ended up landing in a building approximately 100 yard north of Light." The hologram followed the dot representing Ben into a building that was on fire.

"Light was drawn to this building. Witness statements say that he muttered something about a 'green light' and 'that is the light of creation itself'. At this point, we can only speculate as to what exactly he did. We think when he found the source of the light attached to Ben, he flew into a rage. He beat him and eventually raped him. Somehow, he did manage to absorb some of the light, because when we found Light, he was much stronger than he has ever been."

Gwen was crying.

Kevin was outside, punching the rocks into dust.

* * *

Poor Ben! T.T Go beat the living shit out him Kevin!

Oh, and poor Gwen's emotions. I guess.


	6. Living

A/N: I lost all my notes when my phone died so this didn't quite turn out as well as I had imagined it would. I think it turned out relatively well though, despite the lack of planning. My new notes are now on my phone, computer and usb drive, just to be safe. This, along with the next couple chapters, begins a short crossover with a little more of the DCU, so, if you only like the Titans, go ahead and stop reading.

I was joking! Come back! Ah well, the rest of you, enjoy.

* * *

It had been five years since they had been reunited in Titans Tower. The Titans helped them find more permanent housing. Kevin, along with Gwen, insisted that they not live in Jump City. Ben reluctantly agreed.

The Titans East had stepped up. Bumblebee told Robin that Gwen could use her apartment for as long as she wants and there was plenty of space in the Auxiliary Command Center for the boys.

Gwen was making friends and she had a job as a martial arts instructor and was attending college. But she wasn't happy.

It was midday Saturday at Marshland Mall; Gwen was with Marie and Leanne, two of her fellow classmates, on a shopping spree. Marie was modeling the latest outfit from Rose Blanc, even though it cost more than a bachelor's degree.

"Oh my god, this is so beautiful. I wish I could afford it."

"Maybe after you become doctor, Marie. What do you think, Gwen?"

Gwen was looking at a pair of 900 dollar jeans with feigned interest, her back to the pair. Without turning, she said, "It looks nice, you should buy it."

Her friends looked at one another. Marie spoke, "Are you alright Gwen?"

"Yes," she replied, in a most unconvincing tone."

Their eyes narrowed. They finished their business and left for the food court.

Gwen poked at her salad as the others ate.

"We know you aren't okay. You can talk to us."

Gwen looked up at the pair. There was genuine concern in their face.

"I… I never told you where I was from and how I ended up here. The reason why is because it's painful and it's the most painful and personal memory I have. But you two are the best friends I have, and I need to share it with someone.

"The whole story is difficult to hear. You must never tell it to another living soul. Understand?"

They both nodded and said, "Yes." Then Gwen told them the story of her universe, her arrival in this universe, Ben and the relocation to Titans East.

"So, you're basically in a sort of… witness protection program run by superheroes?"

"I suppose you could call it that."

"So, where is your cousin now?"

Gwen sighed and took a sip of her smoothie, "Safe."

* * *

"Kevin, stop working on that heap of junk and come eat! I made Banana Barbecue Kiwi Smoothies!"

Kevin's stomach lurched. "He's trying to poison me using weird food combinations."

Kevin walked into the kitchen as Ben put dinner on the table: Chicken Parmesan.

"I was kidding about the smoothies, they're Strawberry."

"You had my stomach trying to run for it's life."

Ben simply smiled and sat down next to Kevin. They talked and Kevin even did some "lovey dovey" stuff, as he called, giving in to Ben's requests that he be more romantic.

"You know Ben, I just put the back seat into my car, wanna christen it?"

"I still have a huge bruise on my back from when you wanted to christen the front seats," he whined.

Kevin, facing the prospect of no sex, put on the most adorable face he could muster.

An impish grin appeared on Ben's face, "That just means you're in for a world of hurt tonight."

Kevin's face now mirrored Ben's, though there was much more lust in his eyes.

Ben stood up suddenly, "But, you need to take a shower first; you're covered in engine grease."

Kevin was already on his way up the stairs as Ben finished the sentence. Ben smelled himself and noticed that he was now covered in the same grime as Kevin, "I'll use the downstairs shower."

* * *

Gwen had reluctantly agreed to let her friends meet Kevin and Ben. They were walking down a narrow street in Old Town that seemed to be trafficked by mostly homeless people and those looking for a quick way to get from the old town center to Main Street.

"I didn't even know this street was here," Leanne said as she looked around.

Marie was also looking around, "I know, we must've passed by this a hundred times. That would've saved us days over the years if we knew about it."

Gwen stopped, "This location was chosen because people pass by it and don't notice it. I need to make double sure that you won't tell anyone about this."

In unison, the girls said, "We won't."

Gwen continued on until she reached a small alleyway. The brick at the end of the alley was reflecting light back at the trio. The brick also seemed to be embossed with a large "T" in a circle.

Gwen pressed a jet black brick, which caused the other two to look at her, "It's the doorbell."

A minute later, Ben opened the door wearing only a towel, "Hi Gwen, wasn't expecting you. Who are they?"

Gwen's friends were giggling as Gwen's face turned red from embarrassment, "I'll tell you after you put clothes on."

Ben looked down, "Right, off I go." Ben ran off and the towel, much to the chagrin of Gwen, was left behind.

Her friends stopped laughing and gawked as Gwen turned a deep maroon.

"Hey Kev, get dressed, we got company!"

Gwen rested her face in her palm, "At least we didn't walk in on them having sex," she thought."

She motioned towards a room to the right, "Have a seat in there, I need to go check on something."

* * *

Gwen walked into a control room, the only place Ben and Kevin never seemed to use. She walked over to the main console and blew the dust off of it so she could see the labels. She pressed a button labeled "Titan's West Tower".

The screen lit up and displayed a large "T" encircled by "Connecting…" Seconds later, Dick Grayson appeared on the screen.

"Hi Dick, how have you been?"

The former boy wonder smiled, "Good. I started going to college in Gotham last autumn. I've actually been meaning to contact you."

"Why?"

"I learned what the message from the Omnitrix meant, 'Attempting to connect to parent element.'"

Gwen looked shocked, "I had forgotten about that, it was so long ago."

"Well, we took readings from the Omnitrix in the Tower five years ago, but the readings were incorrect because of the safety measures within the Tower."

"What safety measures?"

"Growing up around Batman has a tendency to make you just as paranoid. The walls of all Titan facilities are lined with, among other things, a synthetic Yellow Element."

Gwen stared at him, "Which is?"

"The opposing element of the Green Element, which is a main component of the Omnitrix," Robin explained as an explosion of noise was heard."

"Sound like the Titans are back from a mission," Gwen said."

"Yes. As I was going to say, if the Omnitrix was programmed to connect to the "parent element", then that would make it the Green Lantern Battery. They'll know you're here, and that means they are looking for you. It was probably part of the plan. I put a word into the Justice League. They'll be able to help you a lot more than the Titans."

"Thanks Dick, send my love to Kori."

Dick nodded and the screen displayed Titans logo.

She pressed the shutdown button and left the room.

* * *

In the sitting room the girls were being thoroughly entertained by Ben and Kevin, who had decided to tell stories of their encounters with villains in their former home and even of when Kevin was still a bad guy.

"So, Vilgax has this iPod in one hand and Ben in the other," Kevin said, holding an iPod in one hand and Ben by the wrist in the other, while wearing a completely absurd face, "Gwen and I managed to convince him that it was even more powerful than the Omnitrix."

Ben conjured up fake tears, "I liked that iPod. It was a gift from Grandpa."

Gwen walked in, "All twenty of them were and eleven of them were some way or another, lost to the enemy."

"You should've stopped bringing your iPod to the battles," Kevin said, "They would've lasted longer."

"The other nine he broke himself, Kevin."

Kevin let out a laugh, "How did you manage to break that many iPods?"

Gwen let a smile creep onto her face as the two fought playfully. She sat down next to her two friends, "Having fun?"

Marie had a huge smile on her face, "Oh yeah. I had become too serious, it's like they never bothered growing up."

"They really haven't changed that much over the years, to be honest," Gwen said."

"It doesn't seem like they even have any sort of responsibility," Leanne noted.

Gwen looked at Ben, who had managed to pin Kevin. "Ben doesn't have much at all. He simply assumed the role of househusband. Kevin has quite a bit; he's a protector and provider. Then again, he started his own garage, so, he really likes his job, and he's only open one day a week. He's really expensive."

* * *

Around dusk, Gwen's friends left and Gwen sat down with Ben and Kevin.

"How's college, Gwen?" Ben offered her a strawberry kiwi smoothie, which she took.

"It's great. But there are more important things to discuss. While you two were upstairs, I slipped into the Ops Center and called Titans West and talked to Dick…" She told them about the conversation.

"He told the JLA?"

"Yes, and we should be expecting someone soon, either tonight or tomorrow, most likely."

"Finally," Ben said, looking at his Omnitrix.

Within the hour, Ben had fallen asleep on Kevin's lap, while Gwen and Kevin continued to talk.

* * *

At about midnight, the doorbell rang, causing Ben to sit upright. The screen next to the door showed a man clad in green and black looking around until he found the hidden camera. A green flash filled the screen and was replaced by a green lantern and a man's voice "This facility is now under Green Lantern control."

The front door open and the man stepped through, "I'm here for Rusjea."

* * *

A/N: That's it. Next week, Hal Jordan says some stuff and Ben says, "No juice for you!" Well, no promises on that last one.

I also started working on chapter one of Part 2 of this crossover series, so those of you who enjoy Danny Phantom or Teen Titan/whatever crossovers, rejoice! It'll be up next week or the week after. Maybe this week, who knows? I don't have anything better to do.


	7. Oa

A/N: Sorry about the lateness, I wasn't feeling well. Once again, this is more of a B10/DCU xover, but it'll go back to a straight up B10/TT soon enough.

* * *

"I said I'm here for Rusjea, where is she?" The Lantern stared intently at the trio.

Gwen stepped forward, staring right back, "We have no idea who that is."

The Green Lantern narrowed his eyes, and then relaxed, "Well in that case, I'm sorry for the intrusion."

Gwen, Kevin and Ben stared at one another.

"I'm Hal Jordan of the Green Lanterns. I've been looking for this 'Rusjea' person for about five years. The Guardians say she's from another universe. Nifty, right?"

"Umm… hey Gwen," Kevin said, "do you recall the defense protocol that brought us here?"

"Yes, I remember," she turned to the masked man, "Excuse me, Mr. Jordan?"

"Please, call me Hal."

"Okay, Hal. You might be looking for us. We're from a different universe; we were brought here because Defense Protocol RUSJEA was activated."

"Do you have the omni…thingy?"

Ben stepped past the laughing Kevin, "The Omnitrix," he extended his arm.

The Omnitrix glowed, "Green Lantern power ring detected."

A hologram of Azmuth appeared, "To whom it may concern,

"When I met the Guardians many years ago, I told them that the Omnitrix may return to this universe should a terrible calamity befall my own universe. They were told to seek Rusjea, my wife. Unfortunately, Rusjea died during the war with the Highbreed. The Omnitrix is now Ben Tennyson's, not the one who I would've chosen, but he's competent enough."

Ben mumbled some obscenities, Gwen shushed him a told him not to speak ill of the dead.

"When the Rusjea protocol was activated, the entire contents of the Primus server was downloaded into Ben, which I must admit, was not my best idea, but it was done in haste. I created an updated protocol that would send the Omnitrix here and uploaded it in a mere four hours. The Guardians will," Azmuth stopped, and the hologram rotated to face Ben.

"Ben, I'm sorry. The human body wasn't meant to store that much information. You're most likely experiencing constant pain, you're bruising easily and you're healing very slowly," Azmuth was barely holding back tears. "I'm sorry that I forced this upon you. The Guardians will fix it." The hologram turned to Hal Jordan.

"Green Lantern, I trust that you will bring Ben directly to Guardians. The longer it takes, the more time it will take for him to recover from what I have done." The hologram flickered out of existence.

Ben was crying, "He did what he had to do… he shouldn't be sorry."

"Ben, he felt as though he should've been more prepared," Gwen said putting a hand on his shoulder.

Kevin hugged Ben closer, "He thought that you had been through enough, that you deserved better."

Hal Jordan had tuned them out and gone outside. When he came back in, he simply said, "Let's go."

A green spaceship stood in the alley, "We'll take it to the JLA Satellite. From there, we'll take a teleporter to the Tamaran Memorial Holo-Platform, and then warp to Oa."

* * *

They arrived on the JLA Satellite, where they were greeted by several heroes they had seen on television. Batman grunted at them and Gwen understood why Robin wasn't exactly fond of him. The Flash warned them that "Once you go into warp in a Lantern ship, you'll taste green." When Gwen opened her mouth, she was cut off by Green Arrow, "It's true. Right, Hal?"

"Yup. Not sure why, but it's the only color you can taste."

* * *

They arrived on the Tamaran Memorial Holo-Platform, where a large planet was being projected from the station. A plaque read, "In memory of Tamaran and her people."

"War?" Kevin looked up.

"Yes, if you go back far enough, it was an interplanetary war. Only a handful left."

They arrived at the dock, where Hal created the ship again. "On we go to Oa." The cabin blurred and Kevin yelled, "Green tastes like rotten cabbage and feet!"

* * *

They arrived on Oa, and several small men with tufts of white hair greeted them. "You are injured, come. We must eliminate the root cause." The led them to a large lantern with a green crystal inside.

"Move closer to it."

Ben walked toward the lantern until the Omnitrix activated.

"Omnitrix has connected to the Parent Element. Download of the Primus Server contents will begin soon. User will be put into sleep mode."

Ben looked around, "What?" He fell to the ground with a mighty snore.

* * *

Ben opened his eyes, and saw a black and green blob.

"Ship, ship, ship."

"Ship?"

"Hi Ben. You look old."

Ben sat up, and looked at the far side of the room, "Julie?"

Julie was sitting a chair petting Ship.

"Ship and I were in the back yard playing fetch when the darkness came. Then he perked up and latched onto my wrist. He turned into the Omnitrix. Next thing I know I'm falling through the air and Ship turns into a… ship and flew here. The Guardians said that Ship received a signal from Azmuth because he had the Omnitrix data stored within him."

Ship had jumped onto Ben's chest and begun cooing. Ben patted Ship on the head, "Good Ship."

They sat in relative silence, the only sound coming from Ship, for several minutes, until Julie spoke.

"I've known about you and Kevin for a while."

Ben briefly displayed shock, then relaxed, "How?"

"Woman's intuition, I guess. You and Kevin always seemed to be more interested in each other than in Gwen and I."

Ben looked down. Ship licked him with a scaly tongue, "I do love you, Julie. But I'm just not in love with you." Ben looked up at Julie.

They laughed. Julie stopped shortly before Ben and said, "That was so cheesy."

"I know."

* * *

Julie escorted Ben to a large cafeteria populated by countless Green Lanterns and, at one table near the windows, sat Gwen and Kevin, who waved at them.

"Ben, are you feeling better," Gwen asked.

Kevin took another bite out of his hamburger, "He'll be fine, he's a big boy."

"Thanks Kev. You're so caring," Ben said sarcastically, "Where's Hal?"

Julie sat down next to Gwen, "He had to resume his normal duties. I think he's investigating reports of a black market operating on Earth."

"Hope I get to see him again, I feel so much better. That bruise on my back is even gone!"

Gwen's eyes opened wide, "I really wish I had gone with grandma Verdona."

Julie giggled, "Need some bleach for your brain, Gwen?"

"Tennyson, Benjamin," asked a gruff voice.

Ben turned around and looked up at vaxasaurian and a splixson. "Yes?"

The splixson replied, "The Guardians request your presence, please follow us."

Everyone started to get up, until the vaxasaurian spoke, "Do you not listen? You're names were not called."

"Calm down, Desezon, they are merely being protective. Come, Tennyson."

* * *

Ben walked into a circular room, Desezon stayed behind while the splixson entered with him.

"Thank you, Polarin."

Polarin bowed and then multiplied into several copies of herself.

Ben looked up and the blue hued individuals that had summoned him, "You called for me?"

"We went over everything the Omnitrix downloaded into the Green Element, Benjamin Tennyson. We fear we may know what happened to your universe."

"Okay…"

"It died…"

"Thanks, I figured that out when Azmuth told me in that hologram five years ago."

One of the Guardians muttered rather loudly, "Uncouth youth."

"Yes, we know, but we also discovered why…"

"And if you hadn't interrupted you would've heard it by now!"

"Calm down."

"Azmuth was working on a new version of the Omnitrix. You can see that he was upgrading Primus to work with what he was calling the "Ultimatrix"."

"It seems as though Azmuth used all of the Green Element that we gave to him many years ago to construct the Omnitrix, so he turned to an alternate energy source."

"Death."

"Ben stared blankly, "Death?"

The Guardians nodded in unison.

"The Ultimatrix was made to use residual mana from the souls of the dead. Ingenious, yet macabre."

"But the device used an unstable element from a planet known as 'Anur Phaetos'. From what we know of your history, we believe you have met one of it's inhabitants: Ghostfreak."

Ben shuddered, "Yes."

"The element is somewhat sentient…"

"It possesses an id, nothing more. It began to process souls and the Ultimatrix was powered, but rather than process only what it needed, it achieved critical mass."

"It exploded and became the darkness that you encountered. Azmuth escaped to Primus before the explosion. Galvan Prime was the first planet to fall. The darkness spread out in search of mana, with each mana source found, the darkness grew."

"When the darkness enveloped you felt all at once warm and cold…"

"It was familiar to you."

"You had faced death more than most humans. You had felt both its icy grip and its warm, caring embrace."

"How is death warm and caring," Ben shouted.

The Guardian in the center, who thus far had remained silent, spoke, "Death is strange, Benjamin. Few wish to die. When death grasps you, it is without remorse. Death cares not who dies. But when death is over, death's touch is warm and caring. You have been released from your mortal coil and no feel the pain."

Ben thought for a moment, "It was familiar to me? I've died?"

"Yes. Three times, if we interpreted the Omnitrix data correctly."

"The Omnitrix is an ark of sorts, designed to bring entire races back to life."

"The wearer of the Omnitrix is its protector. If he or she dies, it is defenseless. Therefore it was designed to defibrillate the wearer's heart."

Ben nodded.

The Guardian in the center spoke again, "I believe we have covered everything. Do you have any questions?"

Ben slowly shook his head.

"Polarin," A Guardian on the far right said, "could you please escort him back?"

She merged into one, "Yes sir."

"Polarin," The center Guardian beckoned at her, "A word."

Polarin split and she continued to escort Ben out while heading toward the Guardian.

Ben ended up outside where Hal Jordan was talking to Gwen, Kevin and Julie.

Ben walked up to them, and when asked, told them everything.

"Death? Sounds a bit stupid for Azmuth," Gwen ranted.

"An unstable element from Anur Phaetos is stupider. I'd be weary of a stable element," Kevin said.

Julie simply looked at Hal, "I have no idea what they are talking about."

"Me either."

* * *

Hal Jordan took them back to Earth, Julie included.

"Julie is going to stay with me," Gwen said as Hal left them in front of the entrance to Ben and Kevin's home.

Ship turned into a sports car and Gwen hopped behind the wheel. Julie groaned. "You don't have a driver's license in this universe!"

"C'mon!"

"We'll get you one tomorrow."

* * *

"Shall we adjourn to the backseat, my dear?"

"Why, that is the best idea I've heard in a while."

Ben and Kevin ran inside.

* * *

Thousands of miles away, alarms were blaring as bombs lit up the night sky.

A masked man stood on the wall of Jump City Super-Maximum Prison.

"Come, fellow villains, the city has been silent for far too long."

Hundreds of villains swarmed out of the prison through the gaping holes in the wall.

Guards fell to their death and covered the criminals with blood.

A man in black and white emerged with one thought on his mind, "I must find him again. I must find that light!"

* * *

A/N: Yeah. Julie. No idea why. And she knew. Gwen didn't. Take that Gwen! Oh... I also have another chapter going up. Like right after this one.


	8. Light

A/N: Quick warning: This chapter contains death.

A/N: This may be a little OOC and AU at times, but try to keep an open mind.

* * *

Gwen and Julie were watching an awful movie named "Tormented" when the phone rang.

"Who would be calling you at 3:40 in the morning," Julie inquired as she scratched Ship absentmindedly.

Gwen paused for a moment, "It's not the normal ring," Gwen reached down to pick up the receiver, but the answering machine picked up.

A small panel opened up to reveal a flashing button with a "T" on it.

"I don't like where this is going," Gwen said as she pressed the button.

The TV signal went fuzzy as the Titans insignia appeared.

"This is the Titans Emergency Alert System. A massive breakout occurred approximately one hour ago from Jump City Super-Max Prison. All Titans should be on the lookout for any criminal native to their area that was being held there. Titans on special assignment should await orders."

The message repeated several more times until the signal returned to the movie.

"What was that?"

"That was Nightwing, he helped us when we first got here."

Julie looked at Gwen, who was holding here titan communicator in her hand.

"What are you doing?"

"Julie, me and Kevin are on special assignment."

Julie stared questioningly at her.

"Ben was attacked five years ago. He was raped by Dr. Light."

Julie looked at her in shock, "He… was… How could he not fight back?"

"The Omnitrix was out of commission. Ben doesn't remember, and it's better that way."

Julie opened her mouth as the communicator beeped.

"This is Gwen."

"Gwen, this is Jinx. You are to fortify the Auxiliary Command Center of Titans East. Titans East will be there at approximately 0530. Titans West should arrive at 0900. The Justice League has agreed to provide back up if it is needed. Perimeter Defense Systems will activate at 0410. Full lock down will commence at 0430. Jinx out."

Gwen looked at Julie, "Let's go."

They ran to the balcony and ship took the form of his namesake, letting out a deep, "Ship!"

"We need to get to Ben and Kevin, as soon as possible Ship."

"Ship!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Kevin had gotten the same message, having heard the broadcast coming from the control room while he was working on his car.

He considered waking Ben up, but instead closed the door and the hallway bulkhead.

He waited for his call.

"Go."

"This is Robin. Hold current position. Gwen and Julie en route. At 0410 perimeter defense will activate. 0430 a full lock down will commence. 0530 Titans East Arrive to patrol the perimeter. 0900 Titans West arrive to further fortify perimeter defense. Justice League will provide backup if required. Robin out."

Kevin sat down, after he strategically placed several rifles along the wall and explosive charges, of course, just as Gwen and Julie arrived.

"Kevin! Did you…"

"Yeah Gwen, I heard," Kevin gestured at the walls and explosives, "And I prepared."

Julie looked around, "Where's Ben?"

"Sleepin'"

"Don't you think he should get up so he can fight if he needs to?"

Kevin shook his head, "No. He's the one that Light is after. I sealed the bulkheads leading to the bedroom."

A klaxon blared and Bumblebee's voice sounded throughout the facility, "Perimeter defense activated."

They all stared at one another until Kevin asked, "Want a smoothie?" The girls nodded and he left for the kitchen, returning minutes later with three smoothies on a tray.

"Strawberry banana for Gwen, kiwi lime for Julie, and mango passion fruit for me," Julie and Gwen smiled, "I keep telling you I pay attention. I know your favorites."

A short time later the klaxon blared again and Robin's voice sounded, "This facility is now under a full lockdown."

A series of loud, metallic "shinks" could be heard throughout the building as metal walls fell into place to cover the entrances, resounding "thuds" as concrete and steel walls blocked hallways and scraping "fwumps" as metal bars locked the bulkheads.

They sat in the control room, a concrete and plate steel wall six feet thick separated them from the garage and the front entrance.

"Is Ben going to be okay?"

Kevin brought up a map of the facility, "There are four two foot walls, two bulkheads, and one six foot wall blocking the way."

"So, yes," Julie said.

"I'd say so."

* * *

Ben woke up as the wall outside his room slammed down. He made his way to the panel on the wall, barely able to see in the dim red light filling the room. He touched the screen but received little help, "This panel has been locked down, please contact the Control Room for access."

He made his way out of the room and saw the way was blocked, a large wall with a "T" seemed to be in the way. There was a panel on it, however.

"Maybe this one will work."

He touched the screen, and it lit up, "Codes may be broken, trivia may be learned. Secrets are told only to trusted individuals. These questions may only be answered by Titans."

Ben sighed, "Better than nothing."

"What is the current Robin's true name?"

"Timothy Drake."

The wall slowly began to rise.

He ducked under as soon as it was high enough and got to the next panel. "Raven is also known as 'blank' is the daughter of 'blank' and is from 'blank'."

"Rachael Roth, Trigon the Terrible, Azarath."

The wall rose.

"Man this is too easy." He breezed through the rest and got to the end of the hall.

"What is Kid Flash's birthday?"

Ben was struck dumb. "How am I supposed to know that," he thought, "He hasn't even been born yet."

* * *

"Looks like been is trying to get out," Kevin pointed at the map at green lines in the hallway where Ben was.

"If Ben can get past it, it isn't very secure," Gwen said.

"The barriers open if you can correctly answer the question," Kevin typed something on the keyboard, "It looks like he'll be stuck there, the question for that one is 'What is Kid Flash's Birthday?'"

"June 30th, 2980," Gwen said."

"How do you know that?"

"I listen."

Julie looked at them, "Who's Kid Flash?"

* * *

Ben had given up and went back to bed. He heard the barriers fall back into place shortly after he laid back down. He closed his eyes and drifted into a dreamless sleep.

BOOM.

Ben jumped out of bed, concrete dust falling into his hair. Gwen's voice filled the room, "Ben! Run to the control room now! It isn't safe there!"

He heard the barricades lift and did as ordered. As he passed a barricade it fell back into place. When he passed the final barricade in the hall, he heard another explosion directly above him. Ben jumped back to avoid a large chunk of concrete, the edge of which cut his chest. Ben fell back and clutched the wound.

"Ben," Ben looked up and saw Kevin holding out his hand, "Get your ass up and move."

Ben took his hand and lifted himself up and ran with Kevin to the control room.

Gwen patched up the gash on Ben's chest while Kevin filled Ben in.

"It's just like old times," Ben said, "Some ugly evil guy is after the Omnitrix."

"Yeah," Gwen said.

Julie sighed, "Exactly like old times."

* * *

The explosions continued for several more hours until all that could be heard was the dull hum of the ventilation system. The computer beeped and displayed "Incoming call from Titans East".

It was Nightwing, and behind him was nearly every hero imaginable.

"I believe you already know that you're under attack."

"We noticed, yes."

Nightwing was knocked out of the way by Superman.

"We managed to force a retreat but…"

Superman back away from an angry looking Nightwing brandishing Kryptonite, "We forced him to retreat, but we suffered severe injuries," he gestured behind him where there was a makeshift triage. "We have a plan to defeat him, but unfortunately, it involves using Doctor Light, who retired from heroics years ago."

"How bad is the damage outside?"

"We've seen worse. The command center's armor plating is pretty worn down in a few places, but we're repairing it now."

Ben's head had fallen against Julie's as the painkillers took effect.

"What happened to him?"

"Concrete fell and slashed him. He'll be okay."

Nightwing yawned, "You should get some sleep."

The screen went black. Gwen and Kevin listened to Nightwing's advice and went to bed.

* * *

Outside the next morning, the battle raged as Dr. Light took on the full might of several organizations of heroes. Fueled by the rage within him that had begun brewing when the JLA lobotomized him for a crime he didn't commit, he attacked without mercy.

"You think you can take away my mind," Light yelled as shot the Titan's Mediterranean emblem on a young woman's chest as though it were a target, "The very thing that defines me?"

Light shot the twitching woman again and she moved no longer as her ribcage was exposed.

Orders were being yelled out from all over as leaders coordinated individual assaults. Raven, clad in a white robe appeared in front of Light and enveloped him in darkness, only to be blown back several hundred yards by an explosion of light.

"You think I fear the darkness, witch? I have seen true darkness," He shot at the speedsters that attempted to blitz him, all disappeared momentarily and reappeared two miles away, where they all collided with a building, "The darkness that lies within hearts of the righteous."

The JLA had stopped fighting.

"You know what you created! Zatanna knows," Light went silent, staring at the heroine, no longer attacking, only defending himself.

"There… there was so much evidence against you," Zatanna shouted at him, tears rolling down her cheeks, "I did what had to be done!"

"You did it because you could," Light retorted, every word dripping with malice, "I never would've killed."

Zatanna stared at him.

"But you changed that," Light turned and shot Faith, who fell to the ground and began spitting up blood, "I realized that killing the righteous will make this world safer," he shot at Herald who leapt to the side, taking a hit to his leg, "I am the lesser of two evils."

* * *

Days had gone by. They had stopped receiving updates from the outside and now the battles raged long into the night.

Kevin stood up, "I'm going to run to the kitchen for some food and water."

They looked at the cupboard that had housed the emergency rations and saw that a half gallon of water remained, along with a package of soda crackers and a can of soup.

Gwen stood as another explosion rocked the complex, "I'll come with you."

The barrier lifted up and the garage was crumbling, "Stay under the shield."

The pair ran out to the kitchen. Once there they went through all the cabinets, grabbing waters and any food that didn't require cooking.

Another explosion rocked the bunker.

A siren blared.

"Perimeter breach, garage roof. Perimeter breach, garage roof. Perimeter brea…"

Gwen and Kevin stared at one another, then ran out of the kitchen to find Ben staring at Dr. Light.

"Ben! Run!"

Ben stood still.

Dr. Light moved closer to him, "My prize…"

A swarm of heroes came in through the gaping hole above, "Stay away from him Light!"

Kevin and Gwen rushed toward Ben and pushed him into the control room, then put the barrier in place again.

"Ben?"

Ben was catatonic.

"Ben, wake up."

Raven emerged out of the wall, "Is he alright?"

"No," Gwen said, "He's catatonic."

Raven kneeled down next to him, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos…"

Her soul-self flew into Ben.

* * *

A/N: Yup. Dr. Light is pissed. And there is a superheroine named Doctor Light in the DCU with the exact same powers and costume.


	9. Bellwood

A/N: Once again, I was late. I have a really bad cold or something. This is about half the chapter I had planned, I just don't have the energy to do the whole thing.

* * *

Thump!

"Ow!" Ben bent down and picked up the tennis ball that had hit him on the head, "That hurt, Julie."

Julie started to walk over to him, "You were supposed to block it with that thing I gave you," she grabbed the ball from him, "remember? I sure hope that wasn't your way of letting me win, I wouldn't want my boyfriend to get brain damage just to make me happy."

Ben sighed, "I just spaced out I guess. I don't even remember coming to the court."

"Do you remember that we're meeting Gwen and Kevin at Mr. Smoothie?"

"Yes," Ben replied, as though he was offended that he could forget anything to do with smoothies.

Julie patted him on the head, "You're fine."

* * *

Ben and Julie arrived at Mr. Smoothie shortly night had fallen. Julie joined Gwen and Kevin while Ben ordered their smoothies.

"Hey," Gwen said as Ben arrived with four smoothies, "What took you guys so long?"

"Ben left his wallet at home," Julie replied, "Again."

"I like to change when I get home and sometimes I forget to take everything out of my pockets."

They spoke about this and that until ten o'clock rolled around.

"I got to get home," Julie said, "Good thing Ship can get me there before curfew." She opened up her backpack and Ship leapt out, then took the form a spaceship, "C'mon Ship, we need to go home. Bye everyone, see you on Monday."

"And I have patrol tonight," Gwen said with a sigh, "Hopefully it'll be slow so I can work on all that homework I have," she started walking towards the center of town, "At least it's with Grandpa. See you guys later."

"So, what do you want to do?" Ben looked at Kevin.

Kevin was looking at Gwen as she walked away, "I think… I want to show you where I live."

* * *

They pulled up in front of a small cottage.

"It looks like an old lady lives here," Ben snickered.

"That's because one does."

They walked inside and Kevin yelled, "I'm home grandma."

"I'm in the kitchen," came an old, tired voice from the back of the house.

Ben followed Kevin until he was told, "Wait here, I didn't tell her you were coming."

Through the kitchen door, Ben heard absolutely nothing, the house seemed soundproof. He looked around and saw a Plumber intercom system installed, or at least it looked like it, at first glance. The Plumber emblem had been replaced with the silhouette of a raven.

Kevin opened the door, "You can come in."

"So, you're Ben Tennyson? My bubala has told me many stories about you," She kissed Kevin on the forehead, "Most of them good. I notice he avoids the stories that lead to him going to the Null Void," She smacked him on the head with a rather beefy wooden spoon. Ben laughed.

Grandma Levin smacked him on the head, "That's for smirking when I kissed him on the forehead," she smacked him again on the hand, twice, "And that's for laughing at the pain of another Plumber!" She turned around and picked up something from the stove, causing Ben to step back, "Would you like some Galvan Spice Cake?" She held a plate with a slice of cake on it, which Ben took from her with a thank you.

The adjourned to the sitting room, where Ben learned much of the ornery old woman, the most obvious being that she had been a Plumber.

"So," she began, taking a sip of tea, "Has Max retired yet?"

"He's," Ben started, "Tried. He's still trying. Earth isn't an easy planet to protect though."

"The Omnitrix doesn't make it any easier," She said. Then, in response to the look on Ben's face, "But the Omnitrix is an important tool, created as an insurance policy against extinction."

"We protect the most important thing in the universe Ben," Kevin said, putting a hand on Ben's shoulder.

"Plus, the Earth is a pretty good place to hide something. Nobody in their right minds would want to go here."

"That describes everyone we have ever fought," Ben said.

They talked until midnight, when Grandma Levin left to go to bed.

"C'mon Ben, I want to show you my room."

They went down to the basement, where Kevin's room obviously was.

"I expected it to be..."

"Full of ill-gotten gains?"

"Not the words I would've used. I take it Gwen was down here?"

"She kept bugging me."

"That explains why she didn't talk to you for a week and a half."

"Best ten days of my life."

Ben laughed, "I'm telling Gwen."

Kevin smiled, "I still have you," he bent over and kissed Ben.

* * *

Ben woke up in his room, staring at the blue ceiling, lit dimly by the dawn's light.

"I'll get up," he thought as he turned over and looked at a poster on his wall for, 'The Raven', "I don't remember that poster."

He got out of bed and stared at it, then saw it depicted a man shouting at a four-eyed raven sitting upon a stone bust, "Maybe someone put it in here because they think I'm not cultured enough," he mused. He looked at the raven more closely, "That raven is creepy," he moved his head, "It looks like it's following me."

Ben gathered up some of his less dirty clothes and, after failing to find any of his own, a pair of Kevin's clean underwear from his duffel bag, and headed to the shower in the dark silence of his home.

By the time he was out, he could hear his dad moving around, and he headed downstairs.

Ben's dad jumped back, "Ben! What are you doing up at," he glanced at the clock, "Fifteen to six in the morning?"

Ben shrugged, "I just woke up."

"It's summer; you do know that, don't you?"

"It is?"

"Yes, which means those parents with teenagers are supposed to get a break from teenagers until they rise from their coffins sometime between noon and dusk."

"I'll try to be normal tomorrow," Ben grabbed a homemade granola power bar and ran out the door yelling, "Have a nice day at work!"

"Have a nice day doing whatever."

Ben jogged down the road, eating the chewy bar that his mother had made the previous day. He was heading to the Plumber base, mostly because he had nowhere else to go this early in the morning.

Once he got to the town center, he began walking as the traffic had picked up, but also so he could more easily listen to the footsteps behind him. He passed the Plumbers building and went into a convenience store to get coffee and a bagel, the entire time looking at everyone that passed by on foot. "None of them are light enough to have been the one following me," he thought.

He walked out and headed towards the Plumber building again, and across the street he saw a woman in a white robe staring at him. He yelled as he turned into Big Chill, "You! Why were you following me?" As he landed in the alley where she had been partially concealed, he found nothing but trashcans and a car on blocks.

* * *

Raven took a deep breath as her soul-self reentered it's body. After a minute of shallow breathing, she looked up, "He's in Bellwood, five years ago. He fabricated a reality in which nothing ever happened."

"Can you get him back to us?"

"Yes. The reality he created is but a shadow of the true Bellwood. I think he knows that it isn't reality. He knows he's escaping from something. It's only a matter of time before he wakes up on his own."

Gwen opened her mouth, but Raven answered her question, "It could still be years before this fabrication falls apart on its own. I can shatter the reality with the reality he is afraid to face. He's blocked off his memories; I have to force them to seep through. I'm not sure what will happen when he wakes up…"

Kevin stared at her, "Do it, I know Ben.

Gwen nodded, "Ben can handle it," her voice shaky and unsure.

"I'll need a bit more time before I can go back in, my soul-self can only be outside my body for so long." Raven fell back against a wall and as Kevin, Gwen and Julie rushed toward her, they heard a faint snoring.

Meanwhile Titans had forced Dr. Light back outside and received reinforcements, the most important being Doctor Light, who played defense by absorbing the light Dr. Light threw at them.

* * *

A/N: Ben created a reality in which the universe never died. The reason it jumps around like it does is because there are some holes he can't fill. Kevin doesn't necessarily live at his grandmother's house, but I see the Plumbers being crazy prepared and having an extensive database on it's operatives and their homes, in case one goes rogue. Ben, at one time came across Granny Levin and used that info to create the above. Whenever he doesn't have info to fill in the event that is coming up, it skips.

I dunno. I liked it.


	10. Ending the Siege

A/N: This is the final chapter. Huzzah! I got stuck a bit, but finally figured out what to do last night, and quite unexpectedly, wrote the ending.

What? This fact saddens you? Well, there is more, it's part of series...

Well, read on!

* * *

Ben walked to Mr. Smoothie to meet up with Julie, Gwen and Kevin. He kept wondering who the person in the alley was. She, he had determined from the silhouette, seemed familiar.

"I know I've seen her somewhere," Ben thought as he turned and Mr. Smoothie's came into view, "But I just can't place her."

Ben's phone rang, "Hello?"

"Ben, it's Max, I need you to go to PTS05 and help Manny train. See you at the Driver," he hung up.

Ben stepped into the parking lot and was greeted by his friends, as well as several people he knew only in passing.

Ben automatically walked towards Julie, but Kevin got in his way.

"Kevin, what's your pro…"

Kevin grabbed Ben and kissed him passionately, as he had done thousands of times in secret.

Gwen stared in shock for several seconds, and then ran off in tears.

Julie walked up to Ben as Kevin came up for air, "I've known for a while Ben," then she ran after Gwen.

Kevin looked around with a blank look on his face, "What happened?"

Ben punched him, "You just kissed me for about a minute in front of Gwen and Julie and," Ben turned around, "Half of the Bellwood High lacrosse team."

"I kissed you in public?"

"French kissed, actually."

They stayed silent for several minutes until Kevin said, "I'm going to go explain to Gwen."

"Grandpa Max called me for a training session with Manny. Not sure how long it will take."

Kevin bent down and kissed Ben, "Bye."

Ben returned the farewell and transformed into Big Chill, flying towards the hills.

* * *

Ben entered the Bellwood Mass Driver Facility and put on the fur coat with his name on it. The entire facility was covered in a layer of frost. He ran his hand over a sign, "No Smoking Except in Designated Areas, Liquid Oxygen in Use."

Ben made his way though several heavy doors, a dull hum reverberating in his skull, until he reached a catwalk and saw his grandfather below.

"Grandpa!"

"Ben! I wasn't expecting you for several hours."

Ben slid down a ladder and landed on the metal floor, "I wasn't expecting to be here, but things wrapped up early."

"Well, Manny is loading the supplies on to the ship, why don't you go help him."

* * *

Ben took the elevator to the loading bay where Manny was loading large crates into the ship.

"Hey Manny, want some help?"

"No, I want to load several tons of crap onto a spaceship all by myself."

"I'm sorry, was that sarcasm? I couldn't tell." Ben transformed into Humongousaur and picked up several boxes and placed them in the cargo bay. Within minutes, they were done.

"You think you're so cool."

Ben sighed, "We need to work on that."

Manny raised an eyebrow along with his voice, "On what?"

"Your temper."

Manny punched the wall, leaving four large dents, "I don't have a temper!"

"We all know you do. We're going to be on PTS05 until your training is done," Ben said to Manny.

"How long is that going to take?" Manny whined.

"Until I'm satisfied with your progress."

Manny punched the wall again and walked off grumbling.

* * *

Ben didn't see him until he was seated in the cockpit. Manny was asleep.

"I gave Manny a tranquilizer. He was rather combative. He refused to get in there."

Ben let out a sigh, "This is going to be hard, isn't it?"

"You can do it."

Ben was pressed back into his seat as the ship accelerated rapidly. He felt the several sharp curves and then a rapid increase in altitude as they hit the launch ramp. Moonlight filled the cockpit as they exited the mountain and with a rumble, the booster rocket kicked in to help them exit the atmosphere.

As they became weightless, the boosters detached and the melodic hum of the Galvan ion thrusters filled the cockpit as the autopilot moved them to the spacestation.

* * *

Manny woke up as Ben was placing him on a bed in the space station, "Where the hell am I?"

"PTS05," Ben stated matter-of-factly.

"I told Max that I won't come here with you," he swung at Ben, who ducked.

"Is that at all necessary?"

Manny shivered, "Why is it so cold here?"

"It's not used often; it'll take a while to heat the entire station. Probably going to be a few days until it's comfortable." They stared at one another, separated by an awkward silence until Ben spoke again, "I'm going to start dinner, and training will start tomorrow."

Ben walked out the door and turn into Big Chill, phasing through the floor so he could more quickly get to the kitchen.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Ben made his way upstairs to tell Manny that dinner was nearly done. As he peeked into the door, he saw to trace of Manny.

He walked in and said loudly, "Manny? Where are y-"

With a loud thud followed closely by what could only have been the sickly sound of Ben's ankle and several of his ribs snapping, Manny landed on top of Ben. Ben screamed in agony.

"I waited for you," Manny whispered into Ben's ear, his hot breath condensing on his cool skin," I waited for the light..."

Ben looked into the four yellow eyes, "You're hurting me," Ben motioned down at his torso, where the tetramand was resting upon his broken ribs.

Manny let out a low growl, "And? You are mine…"

Ben reached towards his Omnitrix only to have his hands grabbed by Manny's upper arms and held in place by his left. Ben whimpered, eliciting a smile from Manny.

"You and I are going to get along fine."

The tetramand shifted his weight and removed Ben's clothes, using Ben's pants as leg bindings. He then removed his own clothes, standing up to do so, keep a foot on Ben's wrists.

Ben then had a moment of clarity, "What would Gwen do if she were me?"

Ben shouted as loud as he could, as though he wanted everyone in the universe to hear it, "Initiate training program 52!"

The floor beneath them opened and they fell.

* * *

Ben woke up in a burning building, hovering over him was a man in a black and white suit, muttering madly about the "green light".

"You're awake…" The man said."

Ben blinked, "Who… who are you?"

"I am Dr. Light, boy. And you are the answer to my problems. With you, I shall have my revenge. With that light, I shall destroy those who destroyed me." He got up close to Ben and sniffed him.

Ben smelled cheap vodka.

"Normally I would not do this. But, I can smell I do-gooder a mile away. You stink of righteousness and purity. I can't have that."

Light bent down and ripped off Ben's tattered clothing, and Ben noticed that he had a broken ankle and several broken ribs. As he yelled in pain, Light laughed cruelly.

"My boy, your injuries shall become far worse."

Ben lost track of time. Several times he attempted to use the Omnitrix, but to no avail.

Eventually, several teenagers in odd clothing barged in, looks of horror on their face, and he was whisked away by a young woman in a navy cloak.

A woman who now wore a white cloak and stood above him…

Ben looked up and Dr. Light disappeared.

The woman spoke, "You can stand up, if you wish."

Ben looked down and saw that he was not injured, and stood up to face her.

"What happened…" Ben thought a moment, "Raven?"

She smiled, "You were trapped in your mind, and Light was attacking your home. I was tasked with getting you back to reality."

Ben's eyes started welling up with tears, "Did Light… do that to me?"

Raven acknowledged with a solemn nod, "We learned that he went rather insane several years ago after the Justice League dealt with him in a rather unethical way."

"But Manny never…"

"No, it was a spur of the moment plan, I am sorry for using him. He was never going to follow through, if that helps."

"But how did it come here?"

"You brought yourself here, with my guidance. You attempted to save yourself by falling into the training grounds, but you yourself fell to Jump City, into the very area under siege by Light. The green light given off by the Omnitrix as you fell brought him to your location."

Ben stared at her in silence.

"All you need to come back to the waking world is a thought. One powerful thought."

Raven faded away.

* * *

Raven woke up with a gasp, "He's on his own now. He needs a powerful thought to come back."

For ten minutes they stared at Ben, when Raven hopped up, a horrified look on her face. She stared at Ben, "I must go. There are preparations to be made." She disappeared.

Julie, Gwen and Kevin stared as Ben lay still, save the occasional twitch of the nose.

Eventually Raven returned, smelling heavily of jasmine and peppermint.

All were curious, but thought it better not to ask.

Minutes later, in a flash of green, Ben shouted "Big Chill", his voice dripping with hatred and phased through the wall.

"Oh no…" all but Raven said in unison.

Raven grabbed them and moved them outside.

The raspy voice of Big Chill was shouting at Light, "…raped me?"

"As you no doubt recall, I gave you my reasoning. You really aren't my type."

"There was I time when I would put people like you in prison."

"Oh? And what would you do now?"

Many heroes in the crowd whispered, most of them said, "Oh god, no…"

"I'd kill you," Ben said, in an uncharacteristically serious voice. Another flash of green blinded those too close to Ben; those further away saw the greedy look upon Light's face, until the light disappeared and his face by a look of sheer terror.

Before him was a translucent black blob floating in the air. It shifted in the air and suddenly in enveloped Light, becoming a opalescent. A faint scream was heard before silence fell over the city. Ben returned to human and there was a look of horror on his face.

Raven rushed towards him and they disappeared together.

* * *

Ben was in a corner sobbing, "What did I do?"

"Ben, we all make mistakes," Raven drew a large circle on the floor and pulled out a pocket watch, which showed a series of revolving arcane symbols, which she copied onto the floor.

Ben continued mumbling. Raven walked over to him, "Come here," she dragged him to the circle and took out a dagger, "It needs your blood," She pricked herself with the dagger and smeared it on the floor. She grabbed Ben's hand and did the same.

"Azaren Motron Zonthas… Orinik Horadiv Severin!"

A massive portal appeared in the center of the circle, and Raven dragged Ben through.

* * *

Several people clad in shining armor waited on the other side, "Welcome to Azaren, death place of Azar."

"This is the guy, he's killed for the first time, it was more revenge motivated, but it was a truly awful person. Help him through it." Raven took out her watch, "I have to go back before the alignment between the portals is lost."

* * *

Ben had begun walking with the warrior monk, "Azar, in his later years, was less idealistic. As a young man, he believed in total pacifism. As time wore on, he realized that to achieve change, you must fight, and if necessary, die."

Ben stayed silent.

"But I imagine you do not care about that. I understand you killed a man. Most here have never had to kill, but Orao has. In fact, she too killed out of revenge. I leave you in her hands."

They stopped in front of a massive building with a sign reading, "The Prophetess Orao".

She stepped out wearing a white and green robe, "You are Ben, correct?"

"Yes."

"You seek to overcome the feeling within yourself?"

Ben nodded.

"I shall have you what I did, first, meditate in the Sapphire Falls for three hours starting at three in the morning, in the nude while holding the weapon you used to slay the individual in your hands. I found lotus position to work the best."

Ben nodded, "And then?"

"If I told the next part now, you'd forget it, the process took many years for me."

To be continued…

* * *

A/N: Yes, Ben is separated, once again from the others. Oh, and he killed Dr. Light out of revenge. The alien he turned into, obviously, isn't in the series. It's basically a floating shadow that feeds off of life energy. So, Ben ate Dr. Light. Nom nom nom.

The next part in the series will be a DP/TT xover. Keep your eyes open for it.


End file.
